Shepherd claims "I have not spoken to Sven since he left the England job and I have no intention of speaking to him", and for once there's little reason to dispute his denial. Considering his forthright opinions on Sven during the Swede's time in charge of England, I for one would be amazed if there's any substance to the speculation.

The story - which first raised its head shortly before Souness was sacked in January last year - seems to have been stirred up once again by the presence at Monday's game of Tord Grip, formerly Eriksson's right hand man with England - but Grip was only there as the guest of Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein. Given the snoozeathon that subsequently unfolded, Eriksson's sidekick no doubt regretted accepting the invite even before the rumour mill cranked into action.